Method of producing electrostatically charged gelatin

ABSTRACT

Methods of forming electrostatically charged gelatin are provided. Gelatin is extracted by an acid extraction method ( 12 ) thereby producing a gelatin dispersion ( 14 ), the pH of which is adjusted to the isoelectric point of the gelatin. The pH of the gelatin dispersion ( 14 ) is then further adjusted ( 22 ) so as to cause the gelatin to assume an electrostatic charge.

RELATED APPLICATION

This is a division of Ser. No. 10/294,274, filed Nov. 14, 2002, now U.S.Pat. No. 6,863,783.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally concerns methods of formingelectrostatically charged gelatin. More specifically, the inventionpertains to methods whereby gelatin is extracted from acollagen-containing raw material and processed so as to produce agelatin product exhibiting an overall positive or negative electrostaticcharge based upon the particular processing conditions employed.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Gelatin is a transparent, brittle, essentially odorless and tastelesspowder. Gelatin is typically extracted from by-products of the meatindustry including pork skin, tendons, ligaments, and bones. Gelatin hasbeen utilized in numerous applications because of its ability to absorb5-10 times its own weight in water and to form a gel in solutions havingtemperatures of about 35-40° F. and below. Gelatin has been used in themanufacture of rubber substitutes, adhesives, cements, lithographic andprinting inks, plastic compounds, artificial silk, photographic platesand films, matches, light filters for mercury lamps, clarifying agents,hectographic masters, sizing paper, and textiles. The pharmaceuticalindustry has utilized gelatin as a suspending agent, an encapsulatingagent, a tablet binder, and a coating agent.

Gelatin has been used in the food industry as a thickener, a foodstabilizer and a food texture enhancer. However, the use of gelatin inthe pet food industry has been rare due in part to its expense and theavailability of less costly viscosity enhancing agents such as gumsderived from plant and vegetable sources. Generally, in food industryapplications, gelatin exhibits no net electrostatic charge. Theconventional method of extracting food-grade gelatin includes adjustingthe pH of the gelatin-containing aqueous dispersion to the isoelectricpoint of the gelatin. The isoelectric point is the pH at which amaterial exhibits no net electrostatic charge.

In some food-related applications, it may be desirable to useelectrostatically charged gelatin. For example, gelatin having anegative electrostatic charge may be incorporated intohairball-prevention pet food products. In the formation of a hairball,the hair ingested by the animal clings to the lining of the stomachwhere it becomes entangled with other hairs and undigested food.Hairballs can be very problematic for the animal in that hairballs canlead to diarrhea and vomiting. If the animal were to ingest gelatinhaving a negative electrostatic charge, the gelatin would attract thehair inside the stomach of the animal and carry it through the animal'sdigestive system thereby preventing hairball formation.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,398,004 teaches a method of controlling the isoelectricpoint of gelatin for use in photographic applications. The isoelectricpoint of the gelatin may be altered by the addition of an alkali toincrease the pH of the gelatin solution. This pH is maintained for aperiod of time and subsequently, the action of the alkali is stopped bythe addition of an acid.

U.S. Pat. No. 2,514,635 discloses a method of reducing the viscosity ofgelatin, especially photographic gelatin. The method uses an amine andamine salt buffer to raise the pH of the gelatin solution in order toincrease the gelatin viscosity.

No method of manufacturing gelatin has thus far been available whichwould enable the gelatin to assume an electrostatic charge. Therefore,there exists a real and unfulfilled need for a method of producinggelatin having an electrostatic charge and being of food-grade quality.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention overcomes the above problems and provides methodsof forming electrostatically charged gelatin. In a preferred embodiment,a collagen-containing raw material is provided and formed into anaqueous slurry. A gelatin dispersion is formed by extracting gelatinfrom the slurry at a pH of from about 2-3. A first pH adjustment step isperformed whereby the pH of the gelatin dispersion is adjusted to theisoelectric point of the gelatin. Preferably, the gelatin has anisoelectric point of from about 4.5-5.5 and more preferably about 4.6.Non-gelatin impurities are removed from the gelatin dispersion and thepH adjusted a second time in order to cause the gelatin to assume anelectrostatic charge.

The step whereby non-gelatin impurities are removed from the gelatindispersion generally comprises filtering the gelatin dispersion.Preferably, the gelatin dispersion undergoes a first filtration step forremoval of insoluble materials such as hair and bone which may have beena part of the collagen-containing raw material from which the initialslurry was formed and the gelatin extracted. After the first filtration,the gelatin dispersion undergoes a second filtration or“ultrafiltration” whereby various non-gelatin protein impurities areremoved.

In another preferred embodiment, electrostatically charged gelatin isformed by providing a collagen-containing raw material and forming theraw material into an aqueous slurry. A gelatin dispersion is formed byextracting gelatin from the slurry. During a first pH adjustment step,the pH of the gelatin dispersion is adjusted to the isoelectric point ofthe gelatin. A second pH adjustment of the gelatin dispersion isperformed causing the gelatin to assume an electrostatic charge.

Following the second pH adjustment step, the gelatin dispersion isfurther purified by removing or neutralizing trace amounts of chargedimpurities. A preferred method of removing charged impurities such asminerals, ions, and peptides involves passing the gelatin dispersionthrough either a cation or anion column. If the gelatin is negativelycharged, the dispersion is passed through an anion column wherebypositively charged impurities are removed. If the gelatin is positivelycharged, the dispersion is passed through a cation column wherebynegatively charged impurities are removed.

Preferably, following passage through the anion or cation column, theelectrostatic charge of the gelatin is enhanced by passing a DC electriccurrent through the gelatin dispersion. This enhancement operationenhances the overall electrostatic charge of the gelatin by adding orremoving electrons from the gelatin, whichever the case may be.Preferably, the DC electric current, has a voltage of from about 1-100mV, more preferably from about 5-50 mV and most preferably about 10 mV.The DC current preferably has an amperage of about 1-10 A, morepreferably about 2-4 A, and most preferably about 2 A. Preferably, thecurrent is passed through the gelatin dispersion for a period of up toabout 45 seconds, more preferably from about 10-40 seconds, and mostpreferably from about 10-15 seconds. If the gelatin is negativelycharged, a negative DC current is passed through the dispersion therebyenhancing the negative charge of the gelatin. If the gelatin ispositively charged, a positive DC current is passed through thedispersion thereby enhancing the positive charge of the gelatin.

In yet another preferred embodiment, previously isolated gelatin, thatis, gelatin which has been previously extracted and dried into a powder,is formed into an aqueous dispersion. The pH of the gelatin dispersionis adjusted thereby causing the gelatin to assume an electrostaticcharge. Moisture is then removed from the gelatin dispersion forming agelatin concentrate without first neutralizing the gelatin dispersion,that is, the acid or base used to make the pH adjustment is notneutralized prior to moisture removal.

Preferably, once moisture has been removed from the gelatin dispersion,the gelatin concentrate undergoes a sterilization process thereby makingthe gelatin suitable for use in food products. The gelatin concentratemay be sterilized using any method known to those skilled in the art,however it is preferable to employ a heat sterilization process usingsuperheated steam at a temperature of from about 250°-350° F., morepreferably from about 300°-330° F., and most preferably at about310°-315° F. During the heat sterilization process, the gelatinconcentrate is exposed to the superheated steam for about 2-10 seconds.

The pH adjustment step causing the gelatin to assume a negativeelectrostatic charge comprises adjusting the pH of the gelatindispersion to between about 9-13, more preferably to between about10-12, and most preferably to between about 11-12. The pH adjustmentstep causing the gelatin to assume a positive electrostatic chargecomprises adjusting the pH of the gelatin dispersion to between about1-4, more preferably to between about 1.5-4, and most preferably tobetween about 2-3. The pH adjustments may be performed by adding to thegelatin dispersion acidic and basic materials known to those skilled inthe art. Preferred acids include organic acids such as acetic acid,citric acid, malic acid, fumaric acid, lactic acid and inorganic acidssuch as sulfuric acid and phosphoric acid. Sulfuric acid is the mostpreferred acid for lowering the pH of the gelatin dispersion. Preferredbases include alkali and alkaline earth metal carbonates such as sodiumcarbonate, potassium carbonate, calcium carbonate and alkali andalkaline earth metal hydroxides such as potassium hydroxide and sodiumhydroxide. Sodium hydroxide is preferred for raising the pH of thegelatin dispersion.

Once the gelatin has assumed an electrostatic charge and a portion ofthe gelatin solution moisture has been removed, the gelatin concentratepreferably undergoes a drying process to form a gelatin powder. Anydrying process known to those of skill in the art may be used in formingthe gelatin powder; however, spray drying and vacuum tray drying arepreferred. During the drying process, the moisture content of thegelatin is reduced to between about 6-12% by weight, more preferably tobetween 10-12% by weight, and most preferably to about 12.0% by weight.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a prior art process of gelatin extraction wherebyelectrostatically neutral gelatin is formed.

FIG. 2 is depicts a process according to the present invention wherebyelectrostatically charged gelatin is formed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Pure gelatin is composition comprising a plurality of amino acids invarying amounts. Table 1 illustrates preferred gelatin compositions foruse with the present invention. Amounts of each amino acid are given inthe form of a preferred range.

TABLE 1 Amino acid Amount (by weight) Glycine 25.50-30.50% Proline16.20-18.00% Hydroxyproline 13.50-14.50% Glutamic acid 11.00-11.70%Alanine  8.60-11.0% Arginine  8.10-9.10% Aspartic acid  6.20-6.90%Lysine  4.10-5.20% Valine  2.50-3.40% Phenylalanine  2.10-2.50% Leucine 3.10-3.40% Threonine  1.90-2.20% Isoleucien  1.36-1.80% Methionine 0.80-1.00% Histidine  0.74-1.00% Tyrosine  0.20-1.00% Serine 2.90-4.20% Cystine  0.05-0.10% Cysteine  0.05-0.10%

While not wishing to be bound by any particular theory, it is believedthat the imposition an electrostatic charge on the gelatin involveseither the addition or removal of electrons from various groups on atleast one of the amino acids which comprise gelatin. If the gelatin isto have a negative electrostatic charge, an electron is added to thecarboxyl group of an amino acid while the amino group remains neutral.If the gelatin is to have a positive electrostatic charge, an electronis removed from the amino group of the amino acid while the carboxylgroup remains neutral.

FIG. 1 depicts a prior art process for producing electrically neutralgelatin. Collagen-containing raw material, typically meat industryby-products, is supplied by a tanker truck 10. The raw material isground into small particles and fed to an acidic gelatin extractionprocess 12. During the gelatin extraction process 12, gelatin isextracted from the collagen-containing raw material and a gelatindispersion 14 is formed. The pH of gelatin dispersion 14 is adjusted to4.6 and then sent to a filtering process 16 whereby impurities areremoved. The filtered gelatin dispersion 18 is sent to a dryingoperation where moisture is removed and a gelatin powder 20 is formed.

FIG. 2 depicts a preferred method of forming electrostatically chargedgelatin according to the present invention. Collagen-containing rawmaterial is supplied by tanker truck 22. The raw material is ground intosmall particles and fed to an acidic gelatin extraction process 24.Water is added to the raw materials to form a slurry and the pH of theslurry is adjusted to about 2.0-3.0 using sulfuric acid. The slurry ismaintained in this pH range for a period of up to 4 days at which timethe slurry undergoes a series of heating steps and the gelatin isextracted forming a gelatin dispersion 26. The heating steps occur overa 3 hour period whereby the slurry is heated a plurality of times totemperatures of at least 140° F. Following the heating steps, the pH ofthe slurry is adjusted to 4.6, the isoelectric point of the gelatin, bythe addition of sodium hydroxide. At this point, the gelatin bears noelectrostatic charge.

The gelatin dispersion 26 then undergoes a filtration operation 28 whereimpurities are removed. The filtration operation 28 occurs in twostages, the first of which involves removing insoluble materials such ashair and bone which were introduced into the process with the rawmaterials. The second filtration stage is an “ultrafiltration” stagewhereby very fine particles including non-gelatin proteins are removedfrom the gelatin dispersion 26.

Depending on the electrostatic charge desired, the remainder of theprocess proceeds in one of two directions. If gelatin with a negativeelectrostatic charge is desired, the pH of dispersion 30 is adjusted bythe addition of sodium hydroxide 32 a to between about 10-12. This pHadjustment step causes the carboxyl group of at least one of the aminoacids from which gelatin is comprised to assume a negative charge.However, the amino group of the amino acid remains electrostaticallyneutral. Therefore, the gelatin assumes an overall negativeelectrostatic charge.

After the pH adjustment step, the negatively charged gelatin dispersion34 a undergoes a purification step 36 a in order to remove or neutralizetrace amounts of positively charged minerals, ions or peptides.Purification step 36 a comprises passing negatively charged gelatindispersion 34 a through an anion column whereby the positively chargedimpurities are removed from dispersion 34 a. Following the purificationstep, the negative electrostatic charge of the gelatin is enhanced bypassing a negative DC current through the dispersion 34 a. The negativeDC current has a voltage of about 10 mV and an amperage of about 2 A andis passed through dispersion 34 a for a period of about 10 seconds.

The enhanced gelatin dispersion 38 a is finally sent to a moistureremoval and drying operation 40 a wherein a powdered, electrostaticallycharged gelatin product of food grade quality is formed. Operation 40 afirst comprises the evaporation of a portion of the moisture of enhanceddispersion 38 a under a vacuum thereby forming a gelatin concentrate.The concentrate is sterilized by exposure to superheated steam for notmore than 10 seconds and then dried into a powder having a moisturecontent of about 12% by weight using a hot air spray dryer.

Alternatively, if gelatin with a positive electrostatic charge isdesired, the pH of dispersion 18 is adjusted by the addition ofphosphoric acid 32 b to between about 2-3. This pH adjustment stepcauses the amino group of at least one of the amino acids from whichgelatin is comprised to assume a positive charge. However, the carboxylgroup of the amino acid remains electrostatically neutral. Therefore,the gelatin assumes an overall positive electrostatic charge.

After the pH adjustment step, the positively charged gelatin dispersion34 b undergoes a purification step 36 b in order to remove or neutralizetrace amounts of negatively charged minerals, ions or peptides.Purification step 36 b comprises passing positively charged gelatindispersion 34 b through a cation column whereby the negatively chargedimpurities are removed from dispersion 34 b. Following the purificationstep, the positive electrostatic charge of the gelatin is enhanced bypassing a positive DC current through the dispersion 34 a. The positiveDC current has a voltage of about 10 mV and an amperage of about 2 A andis passed through dispersion 34 b for a period of about 10 seconds.

The enhanced gelatin dispersion 38 b is finally sent to a moistureremoval and drying operation 40 b wherein a powdered gelatin product offood grade quality is formed. Operation 40 b first comprises theevaporation of a portion of the moisture of enhanced dispersion 38 bunder a vacuum thereby forming a gelatin concentrate. The concentrate issterilized by exposure to superheated steam for not more than 10 secondsand then dried into a powder having a moisture content of about 12% byweight using a vacuum tray dryer. In this instance, a vacuum tray drieris preferred to a hot air spray drier because hot air drying mayadversely affect the positive charge of the gelatin thereby having aneutralizing effect.

EXAMPLES

The following examples set forth preferred methods in accordance withthe present invention. It is to be understood, however, that theseexamples are provided by way of illustration and nothing therein shouldbe taken as a limitation upon the overall scope of the invention.

Example 1

In this example, gelatin having a negative electrostatic charge isextracted from pigskin. Approximately 4,000 lbs. of pigskin is ground toa particle size of less than about 1.5 mm using a 1/16 in. plate. Theground pigskin is then mixed with water to form a slurry. The pH of theslurry is adjusted to 2.5 using sulfuric acid. The slurry is maintainedunder acidic conditions for up to 4 days. The slurry then undergoesthree heating steps whereby the gelatin is extracted. Each heating steplasts about 60 minutes. The first extraction step involves heating theslurry to 145° F., the second to 165° F., and the third to 185° F. Theheat denaturing of the collagen contained in the pigskin results in theunwinding of the polypeptide chains thereby releasing the gelatin.

After the gelatin is extracted, the pH of the gelatin dispersion isadjusted to 4.6, the isoelectric point of the gelatin, by the additionof sodium hydroxide. The gelatin dispersion is then filtered to removesuspended solid residues and then filtered again to remove proteinimpurities from the gelatin dispersion. Following the filtration steps,the pH of the gelatin dispersion is adjusted to 12 using sodiumhydroxide.

The gelatin dispersion is passed through an anion column to remove traceamounts of positively charged minerals, ions, and peptides. Upon leavingthe anion column, the dispersion is sent to an evaporation processoperating under a vacuum thereby forming a gelatin concentrate whichcomprises 30% gelatin. The gelatin concentrate is sterilized by exposingthe concentrate to superheated steam at a temperature of 315° F. for 5seconds. Once sterilized, the gelatin concentrate is spray dried at atemperature of 346° F. thereby recovering the gelatin in powder form.This process yields approximately 680 lbs. of gelatin having a negativeelectrostatic charge.

Example 2

In this example, gelatin having a positive electrostatic charge isextracted from pigskin. The pigskin is initially treated as described inExample 1 through the gelatin extraction and filtration stages. Afterfiltration of the gelatin dispersion, the pH of the dispersion isadjusted to 2.5 using phosphoric acid. The gelatin dispersion is thenpassed through a cation column to remove trace amounts of negativelycharged minerals, ions and peptides. After leaving the cation column,the gelatin is processed into powder form as in Example 1, with theexception that the gelatin concentrate is vacuum oven dried as opposedto spray dried. This process yields approximately 740 lbs. of gelatinhaving a positive electrostatic charge.

Example 3

In this example, gelatin having a negative electrostatic charge isextracted from pigskin. The process of this example is the same as thatof Example 1 and includes the additional step of enhancing the gelatin'soverall negative charge by passing a negative DC current through thegelatin dispersion after impurity removal in the anion column. Anegative DC current at 10 mV and 2 A is passed through the gelatindispersion for 10 seconds. The gelatin dispersion is then concentrated,sterilized and spray dried as in Example 1. This process yields about650 lbs. of gelatin having a negative electrostatic charge.

Example 4

In this example, gelatin having a positive electrostatic charge isextracted from pigskin. The process of this example is the same as thatof Example 2 and includes the additional step of enhancing the gelatin'soverall positive charge by passing a positive DC current through thegelatin dispersion after impurity removal in the anion column. Apositive DC current at 15 mV and 2 A is passed through the gelatindispersion for 15 seconds. The gelatin dispersion is then concentrated,sterilized and vacuum oven dried as in Example 2. This process yieldsabout 700 lbs. of gelatin having a positive electrostatic charge.

1. A method of forming electrostatically charged gelatin comprising thesteps of: (a) providing a collagen-containing raw material; (b) formingan aqueous slurry with said raw material; (c) forming a gelatindispersion by extracting gelatin from said slurry at a pH of from about2-3; (d) performing a first pH adjustment to adjust the pH of saidgelatin dispersion to the isoelectric point of said gelatin; (e)removing non-gelatin impurities from said gelatin dispersion formed instep (d); and (f) performing a second pH adjustment to adjust the pH ofsaid gelatin dispersion from step (e) causing said gelatin to assume anelectrostatic charge.
 2. The method of claim 1, said second pHadjustment step comprising adjusting the pH of said gelatin dispersionthereby causing said gelatin to assume a negative electrostatic charge.3. The method of claim 2, said second pH adjustment step comprisingadjusting the pH of said gelatin dispersion to between about 10-12. 4.The method of claim 1, said second pH adjustment step comprisingadjusting the pH of said gelatin dispersion thereby causing said gelatinto assume a positive electrostatic charge.
 5. The method of claim 4,said second pH adjustment step comprising adjusting the pH of saidgelatin dispersion to between about 2-3.
 6. The method of claim 1, theisoelectric point of said gelatin being from about 4.5-5.5.
 7. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising the step of passing a DC electriccurrent through said gelatin dispersion formed in step (f).
 8. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising the step of removing moisture fromsaid gelatin dispersion formed in step (f) thereby forming a gelatinconcentrate.
 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising the step ofsterilizing said gelatin concentrate.
 10. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising the step of spray drying said gelatin dispersion formed instep (f).
 11. The method of claim 1, said impurities removal stepcomprising filtering said gelatin dispersion.
 12. The method of claim11, said filtering step comprising a first filtration to removeinsoluble materials from said gelatin dispersion, and a secondfiltration to remove non-gelatin proteins from said gelatin dispersion.13. A method of forming electrostatically charged gelatin comprising thesteps of: (a) providing a collagen-containing raw material; (b) formingan aqueous slurry with said raw material; (c) forming a gelatindispersion by extracting gelatin from said slurry; (d) performing afirst pH adjustment to adjust the pH of said gelatin dispersion to theisoelectric point of said gelatin; (e) performing a second pH adjustmentto adjust the pH of said gelatin dispersion from step (d) causing saidgelatin to assume an electrostatic charge; and (f) applying a DCelectric current to said gelatin dispersion from step (e).
 14. Themethod of claim 13, said second pH adjustment step comprising adjustingthe pH of said gelatin dispersion thereby causing said gelatin to assumea negative electrostatic charge.
 15. The method of claim 14, said secondpH adjustment step comprising adjusting the pH of said gelatindispersion to between about 10-12.
 16. The method of claim 13, saidsecond pH adjustment step comprising adjusting the pH of said gelatindispersion thereby causing said gelatin to assume a positiveelectrostatic charge.
 17. The method of claim 16, said second pHadjustment step comprising adjusting the pH of said gelatin dispersionto between about 2-3.
 18. The method of claim 13, the isoelectric pointof said gelatin being from about 4.5-5.5.
 19. The method of claim 13,step (f) comprising applying a positive DC electric current to saidgelatin dispersion.
 20. The method of claim 13, step (f) comprisingapplying a negative DC electric current to said gelatin dispersion. 21.The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of removing moisturefrom said gelatin dispersion formed in step (f) thereby forming agelatin concentrate.
 22. The method of claim 21, further comprising thestep of sterilizing said gelatin concentrate.
 23. The method of claim13, further comprising the step of spray drying said gelatin dispersionformed in step (f).